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Jun 16, 2011

Bloomsday Project

To those that don't know it's a day of celebration for all things James Joyce with events around the city of Dublin and in countless other cities around the world.

It's a huge day of cultural significance that involves readings and dramatisations of Joyce's work. People get dressed up in Edwardian clothes and go on pub crawls with crowds of people retracing the journey of Leopold Bloom, the main character in Joyce's novel Ulysses, which takes place on June 16th.

As much as I'd like to suggest recycling the pages of the book for numerous projects (and when I say numerous I mean copious. There are over 1000 pages) but I can't quite bring myself to advise you to destroy a perfectly good book.

So in the spirit of Joyce who set the events of the book on June 16th, the date he went on his first outing with his wife-to-be, Nora Barnacle, and also taking the main character of Bloom as an inspiration, here are 2 romantic ideas that won't break the bank.

Pop on over to the site where it gives you a template to download. All you need is some old newspaper or magazines. Follow the very simple instructions to complete this effortless project and end up with some nifty recycled paper flowers.

Image: How About Orange

Image: How About Orange

If that looks like too much work then you can't get any easier than this next idea that I found over on Family Chic

Image: Family Chic

All you need is a small glass and a balloon.

Image: Family Chic

Cut off 1 inch at the mouth of the balloon.

Image: Family Chic

Try and keep as much of the narrow part of the balloon as this will be the neck of the vase.

Image: Family Chic

Slip the balloon over the glass and depending on your preference pull the neck out or push it into the glass.

Image: Family Chic

So there we have it.

Two romantic ideas for what is possibly one of the most romantic cultural days in Irish literature.

And to sign off here is a third idea from the man himself.

"I was a Flower of the mountain yes when I put the rose in my hair like the Andalusian girls used or shall I wear a red yes and how he kissed me under the Moorish wall and I thought well as well him as another and then I asked him with my eyes to ask again yes and then he asked me would I yes to say yes my mountain flower and first put my arms around him yes and drew him down to me so he could feel my breasts all perfume yes and his heart was going like mad and yes I said yes I will Yes."